Carpet binder and anchor bar



Aug. 15, 1961 H. J. HILL 2,995,769

CARPET BINDER AND ANCHOR BAR Filed June 25, 1956 35 we; (p

5: I is. 4.

HARVA-IY J 1.

BY H/s ATTORNEYJ ,L/ARRIS, I050, 5575/2 & HA 82/5 Patented Aug. 15, 19612,995,769 CARPET BINDER AND ANCHOR BAR v Harvey J. Hill, Monterey Park,Calif-Z, assignor to Roberts This invention relates to rigid devices tobe secured to flooring in position for receiving the edges of carpetsand rugs to serve as binding means therefor and at the same time retainsuch carpets and rugs in laid and stretched condition.

An object of this invention is to provide a metal binder or trim barwhich may readily be nailed to a floor and will clamp the edge of acarpet in laid position while at the same time providing an attractiveappearance.

A further object is to furnish metal anchor and trim bars for carpets,which may be easily produced, as by extrusion, and may have on the undersides thereof downwardly directed flange elements for engaging thesurface of underlying flooring and maintaining the binder strips inproper form after being nailed to the floor, such trim bars also havingoverhanging gripping flange means to be forced down into clampingpositions at the carpet edges.

A still further object is to provide in an anchor bar carpet-engagingedges which are properly formed to minimize carpet wear. It is a furtherobject of the invention to provide a metallic carpet binder havingappropriate slot and groove means for conveniently positioning anchornails or pins and receiving the nail or pin heads in adequatelycountersunk positions under the overlying edge of the carpet.

A further important object of the invention is to furnish a carpetbinder bar with an appropriate overhanging clamp flange whose outwardedge overhangs a median position of the main base section of the bar andcooperates with upstanding prongs on the base section so that the prongslie just outside the edge of the flange, whereby the flange edge bindsthe carpet behind the prongs to maintain proper retentive engagement ofthe carpet by the prongs.

Other objects of the invention, and various features of constructionthereof, will be apparent to those skilled in the carpet-laying art uponreference to the following specification and the accompanying drawingwherein certain embodiments of the invention are illustrated.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a length of metal carpet-anchoringbinder bar in position as it is being installed with an area of carpetand underlying carpet padding being laid;

FIG. 2 is an end elevation of the binder bar of this invention as seenfrom the left of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross section taken approximately on the line 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to that of FIG. 3, the anchoring of the carpetedge having, however, been completed by driving the outer edge of theanchor flange down into the carpet nap to bind the carpet in positionbehind the co-operating carpet-engaging prongs of the binder bar;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary plan view of a portion of binder bar of thisinvention;

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional fragment taken on the irregular line 66 ofFIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a view similar to that of FIG. 2 indicating use of a binderbar of this invention over the edge of asphalt or other tile, linoleumor the like adjacent which the edge of carpet being laid is to bepositioned.

As seen upon reference to the figures of the drawing above described,the anchor bar or strip of this invention includes an elongated basesection 10 having integrallyformed therewith at one edge thereof anoverhanging elongated carpet-engaging flange 12 whose outward portion isrolled as indicated at 14 so that it may be forced down into the nap ofan area of carpet C, its gripping edge 15 being rounded to avoid carpetdamage when forced into the permanent clamping position illustrated inFIG. 4.

As indicated in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, the overhanging clamp flange 12 formsan angular pocket with the overhung portion of the base section 10,which pocket receives the inner or raw edge of the carpeting C, so that,when the flange 12 is forced downward to its carpet clamping position ofFIG. 4, such raw edge of the carpeting is confined within the resultantpocket. Just outward from the edge 15, when the clamp flange 12 is inthe clamping position of FIG. 4, there is located an interruptedlongitudinal row of upstanding prongs 16 over which the carpeting isforced and immediately behind which the rolled portion 14 and therounded edge 15 of the clamp flange 12 are positioned to grip the carpetand to insure retention thereof by the prongs 16.

At the longitudinal edge of the base section 10 oppo- Site from the lineof attachment of the clamp flange 12, there is provided an integraldown-turned shallow flange 18 against which the edge of the usual carpetpadding P abuts in practice. As indicated in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, the widthof the flange 1 8 approximates the thickness of the padding P, and toreduce carpet wear at this point the juncture between the under flange18 and the base It) is well rounded as indicated at 19 in FIG. 2.

Just inside the abutment flange 18 the base section It) is provided witha longitudinal row of upstanding prongs 20, and within the row of prongs20 there is another row of prongs 22 which row also is interrupted, aspresently to be indicated. All prongs 1 6, 20 and 22 are inclinedsomewhat toward the clamp flange 12 to insure good gripping of thecarpet, but the prongs 16 are nearer the vertical than the other prongsso that the carpet is more readily impaled by the forcing action of theflange 12 when bent down. The row of prongs 22 lies inside the outer row20 and outside of a longitudinally extending downwardly directed groove25 located in a median position along the base section 10. The groove 25is formed by downwardly offsetting the corresponding portion of the basemember 10 to form a depressed bottom wall 26, at the sides of which onthe under side of the base section 10 there are formed downwardlydirected very shallow legs or flanges 28. One or both or neither ofthese legs 28 may be caused to engage the flooring F when the partsassume the operative position illustrated in FIG. 4, and when so engagedwill serve to prevent complete collapse of the base section 10 underexcessive pressure, as when being nailed down against the floor.

At appropriate intervals along the length of the base section 10, forexample two inches, short slots 30 are provided for the purpose ofreceiving the shanks of suitable anchoring nails 32 with a limitedamount of longitudinal adjustment. The groove 25 is somewhat tapered, asillustrated, and provides for adequate guiding of nails to the shortslots 30. In addition, the upper edges of the groove 25 are slightlyshouldered as indicated at 34, whereby to provide seats for the edgeportions of the heads of the nails 32 when they are driven into theanchoring positions illustrated.

A reason for interrupting the rows of prongs 16 and 22 as illustrated isto provide adequate clear working space for a hammer head used indriving the nails 32 into their mentioned anchoring positions. Thus,binder bars of this invention are readily anchored by means ofappropriate short nails 32 passed through the short slots 30 in thegroove bottom 26 and driven into the underlying supporting floor F. Suchanchoring causes one of the shallow groove legs 28 to be brought intocontact with the underlying floor, the under edges of such leg 28, thedepending abutment flange 18 and the opposite edge of the base sectionthus lying flush along the floor. The flanges 18 and 28, being oflsetfrom the general plane of the base section 10, act also as stiflenersfor the binder bar. Further to stiffen the binder bar, the edge thereofopposite from the abutment flange 18 is formed with an elongated veryshallow downwardly directed stiffening lip or flange 35 contacting thefloor in the indicated flush relationship with the flanges 18 and 28when anchored. By reason of the presence of the nail slots 30, ratherthan small holes, the operator may readily locate and avoid cracksbetween floor boards when the binder bars and the carpet are being laidupon wooden flooring. The slots 30 have the further advantage ofpermit-ting a small amount of longitudinal shift of one nail withrespect to another When being driven into position, and this isparticularly desirable when driving special nails into concrete, due toa tendency of concrete nails to cause metal shift.

The anchor and binder bar of this improvement is readily producible fromaluminum and aluminum alloys and the like, as by extrusion, all partsother than the upstanding prongs 16, 20 and 22 and the slots 30 beingformed in the extrusion operation. Relatively simple punching procedurescare for the prongs and for the slots. In practice, the prongs 16 aredesirably somewhat more upright than the prongs 20 and 22, such prongs16 having for example an angle of 70 to 80 from the plane of the basesection 10 while the prongs 20 and 22 may have angles around 60". Whencarpeting is being stretched, it is easily hooked over the prongs 20 and22, and, when the clamp flange 12 is tapped down into position, itsrounded edge easily drives the carpeting down over the more uprightprongs 16. Shaping of the clamp flange 12 to assume the position of FIG,4 is very easily accomplished by employment of a block or striprof woodwhich is placed upon a length of the flange 12 and tapped with a hammerto depress the corresponding flange section without marring or otherinjury, while at the same time impaling the adjacent carpet portion onthe prongs 16.

A further important feature of this trim and anchor bar is the manner inwhich the clamp flange 12 is formed adjacent its connection with thebase section 10. The purpose is to provide a smoothly convexly curvedflange 12 when it has been pressed down into the operative position ofFIG. 4. To accomplish this, the bar 10 and flange 12 are extruded toprovide a reverse or ogee curve adjacent their juncture, this being wellindicated in FIGS. 2 and 7. Here the portion at the edge of the base 10and indicated at 40 is convex, an adjoining portion 42 (which is thinnerthan the rest of the flange 12 and to that extent weaker) is principallyconcave, and the rest of the outer face of the flange 12 is againconvex. With this construction, when the flange 12 is forced down to theposition of FIG. 4, the entire outer face of the flange 12 becomessmoothly convex without any abrupt change in contour at the bend Zone,such as would result from a distinct shoulder. For this purpose theshort zone 42 may be about 50% of the thickness of the principal bodyportion of the flange 12, and it may have a lateral extent of about ofthe width of the flange 12.

The invention claimed is:

1. An elongated rigid carpet binder strip including in combination: alongitudinally extending base section having an inner edge and an outeredge; a longitudinally extending clamp flange fixed along the inner edgeof said base section and overhanging a flat inner portion of said basesection for providing an angular pocket outwardly directed to receivetherein a carpet margin, said overhanging flange having a downturnedoutward edge for clamping said carpet; and a longitudinally extendingseries of upstanding carpet-piercing and retaining prongs on said basesection adjacent said flat portion and said flange in position for thecarpet to be impaled on said prongs by driving down the edge of theclamp flange and held locked in position by engagement of theoverhanging edge of said driven clamp flange with said carpetimmediately inward of said prongs, said base section having a downwardlyoflset longitudinally extending groove disposed outward from saidoverhanging clamp flange and having openings in the bottom of suchgroove for the reception of means for anchoring the strip to underlyingflooring.

2. A binder strip as in claim 1 having on its under side at one edgethereof down-turned flange means whose under edge lies approximatelyflush with the under side of said groove and the opposite under edge ofsaid strip.

3. A one-piece elongated rigid carpet anchor strip including incombination: a longitudinally extending base section having an inner andan outer edge; a longitudinally extending clamp flange section securedalong the inner edge of said base section and overhanging a flat innerportion of said base section to provide an angular pocket directedoutwardly for receiving a carpet edge therein; a first set of upstandingcarpet-piercing and retaining prongs provided longitudinally along saidbase section slightly outward from the edge of said clamp flange sectionin position for the carpet to be impaled on said prongs by driving downthe edge of the clamp flange section and held locked in position byengagement of the overhanging edge of said driven clamp flange sectionwith said carpet immediately inward of said prongs, said base sectionhaving at its outer edge opposite from said clamp flange section ashallow downturned abutment flange to be engaged by an edge of carpetpadding underlying the retained carpet; a second set of carpet-piercingprongs lying along the side of said base section adjacent said abutmentflange; and a median downwardly-offset longitudinal groove portionprovided between the two sets of prongs having spaced openings in thebottom thereof for receiving nails and constituting an anchoring means.

4. A device as in claim 3 wherein said median downwardly-ofiset portionhas flange means disposed at its underside having edges in substantiallythe same plane as the lower edge of said downturned abutment flange andthe opposite edge of the device.

5. In a one-piece elongated metal carpet anchor strip,;

the combination of: a longitudinally extending base section having aninner edge and an outer edge and having a continuous longitudinallyextending groove in the upper surface thereof between said edges, saidgroove having a plurality of nail holes spaced therealong; a clampflange section extending continuously along said inner edge andoverhanging an inner portion of said base section to provide an angularpocket directed outwardly for receiving a carpet edge therein; a firstset of upstanding carpet-1, piercing and retaining prongs longitudinallyspaced along; said base section between said groove and said inner edge;a second set of upstanding carpet-piercing and retaining; prongslongitudinally spaced along said base section between said grooves andsaid outer edge; a short downturned supporting flange extendingcontinuously along said outer edge; and leg means depending from theunder-i side of said base section and extending longitudinally? thereofparallel to said edges and adjacent to said holes,} said leg meansdepending from said base section a distance substantially less than saidsupporting flange. I

6. A one-piece elongated rigid carpet anchor strip including incombination: a longitudinally extending base section having an inner andan outer edge; a longitudi-j nally extending clamp flange sectionsecured along the, inner edge of said base section and overhanging aflat inner portion of said base section to provide an angular pocketdirected outwardly for receiving a carpet edge therein; a first set ofupstanding carpet-piercing and re-f taining prongs providedlongitudinally along said base flange section in position for the carpetto be impaled on ''said prongs by driving (10ZVI1 the edge of the clampflange section and held locked in position by engagement of theoverhanging edge of said driven clamp flange section with said carpetimmediately inward of said prongs, said base section having at its outeredge opposite from said clamp flange section a shallow downturnedabutment flange to be engaged by an edge of carpet padding underlyingthe retained carpet; a second set of carpet-piercing prongs lying alongthe side of said base section adjacent said abutment flange, said firstset of upstanding prongs being directed upwardly from said base sectionat a steeper angle than said second set of prongs, thereby providing forthe forcing of a carpet edge substantially straight downward over saidprongs by said edge of said clamp flange section upon forcing the latterdown into engagement with the carpet after the carpet has been hookedover said second set of prongs; and a median downwardly-offsetlongitudinal groove portion provided between the two sets of prongshaving spaced openings in the bottom thereof for receiving nails andconstituting an anchoring means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS623,681 Mooney Apr. 25, 1899 1,847,373 Awbrey Mar. 1, 1932 1,900,769Schemrnel Mar. 7, 1933 1,958,527 Williams May 15, 1934 2,116,846 PilcherMay 10, 1938 2,186,684 Ritter Jan. 9, 1940 2,258,314 Bonnell Oct. 7,1941 2,284,422 Hall May 26, 1942 2,654,909 Paterson et a1. Oct. 13, 19532,687,545 Karas Aug. 1, 1954 2,736,054 White Feb. 28, 1956 FOREIGNPATENTS 690,725 Great Britain Apr. 29, 1953

